Adolf Wallenberg

Adolf Wallenberg ( born November 10, 1862 in Prussian Stargard, † April 10, 1949 in Manteno, Illinois ) was a German internist and neurologist.

Life

Adolf Wallenberg was born on November 10, 1862 as the eldest son of the county physician Samuel Wallenberg at the former Prussian Stargard in West Prussia, near Gdansk. His father, son of a rabbi, died in 1868 of typhus. Adolf Wallenberg and his three brothers were raised by his mother and received in addition to academic training and musical education. Wallenberg learned violin and played this instrument into old age.

After final examination ( as " primus omnium " ) in Gdansk, Wallenberg studied medicine in Heidelberg and Leipzig, where he received his doctorate in 1886 with a dissertation on cerebral palsy. He began his medical practice in Gdansk and was employed until 1888 as an assistant and prosector at the Municipal Hospital. In 1888 he opened a general medical practice in Gdansk. 1891 suffered Wallenberg a fracture of the skull with the result of a complete loss of smell sensation. Two years later, he examined a man who sided cranial nerve symptoms, together with unilateral cerebellar ataxia and on the face and body presented crossed sensory loss for pain and temperature in the wake of a violent attack of vertigo Falls. Due to his anatomical knowledge Wallenberg diagnosed a heart attack in the medulla oblongata in the supply area of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery. Five years later the patient died of a second stroke, and Wallenberg was able to demonstrate during the autopsy that his clinical diagnosis had voted exactly. This clinical picture is known today as Wallenberg syndrome.

In 1907, Wallenberg was appointed chief of internal and Psychiatric Department of the Gdansk City Hospital. In 1912 he spent some time in Berlin to learn new methods of investigation at the Robert Koch Institute. During the First World War Wallenberg was appointed Advisory physician of the 17th Army Corps. In 1928 he gave up his position as chief physician, after he had reached the age limit. His scientific work he continued in a laboratory of the hospital. In recognition of his research him in 1929 Wilhelm Erb commemorative coin was awarded. Because the Hitler regime came to power in Gdansk, Wallenberg had to end his medical career forcibly in 1938. He managed to climb two days before the German invasion of Danzig and the last train to escape via the Netherlands to England. 1943 received Wallenberg and his wife, an American visa and went to the USA. Set in a place about 75 miles from Chicago spent Wallenberg his last years.

Work

Wallenberg has published numerous works mainly on anatomy and neurophysiology. During his collaboration with Ludwig Edinger Wallenberg examined the brain of birds and the role of the olfactory system in recognition and ingestion of food. 1900 and 1902 he taught training courses for a West Prussian doctors and received the title of professor in 1910.

Wallenberg was editor of the annual reports on the achievements in the field of the anatomy of the central nervous system.

The German Society of Neurology (DGN ) awards since 1998 with 5000 Euro doped Adolf Wallenberg Prize for " outstanding research in the field of cerebrovascular disease, cerebral blood flow or cerebral metabolism to German and foreign doctors " under 40.

Writings

• Acute Bulbäraffektion ( embolism of cerebellar Art. Inf post office. Sinistra? ). Arch Psychiat. Nervenkr. , 27, (1895 ).
• Anatomical findings in a as " acute Bulbäraffection ( embolism of cerebellar Art. Inf post office. Sinistr. ? ) " Described the event. Arch Psych Nervenkrankh. , 34, (1901 ).